Page 12 - Level 1 Ukulele Lesson Plans

Choose a volunteer (who you have observed clapping at the right time) to sing the song on their own and clap during the ‘gaps’.
Then, tell the children you’re going to turn them all into bell horses again. Give them each a set of hand bells. Tell them that they are going to gallop around in a circle but that they must be “back at the horse stable” (sitting back in the circle) by then end of the song, “home for today”. Repeat 2 or 3 times, depending on how much time you have left. Don’t worry too much about getting them to gallop in time but try and encourage them to sing along with you.
NB: If there is limited space, ask only two children to gallop at one time.
9. Strumming the Ukulele (7 mins): ‘Bell Horses’ (traditional)
Remind the children how to hold their ukuleles. See activity 5 ‘Tuning’ from lesson plan 1 for instructions. Please also take a look at the strumming instructions under activity 9 ‘Strumming the Ukulele’ in lesson 1.
“Can anyone explain what a chord is?” If they struggle to answer then tell them a chord is made when we strum more than one string at a time. Get the children to strum the open strings downwards as they say “1, 2, 3, 4” several times without stopping. Make sure to encourage a slow and consistent tempo.
“You can change the sound of a chord by pressing the fingers of your left hand down on certain strings.” Play a C chord. “Can anyone remember the name of this chord?”
Remind the children how to play a C chord (left ring finger on 3rd fret of 1st string). “We press down on the string using our third dinosaur finger.” Then say “1 dinosaur, 2 dinosaurs, 3 dinosaurs” as you do the finger movements from the finger dexterity exercise. Your thumb will end up touching the correct finger. Ask the children to count across in the fret spaces “1, 2, 3” using their first, second, then third fingers. Then make sure they have space between the neck and their hand so you can get a pencil through. Remind them it’s like the dinosaur claw grip.
Get the children to finger a C chord and strum downwards to the pulse as they say “1, 2, 3, 4” several times without stopping.
“I want you to practice strumming a C chord as you say ‘1, 2, 3, 4’ for homework this week.”
“C is the chord we need to know to play ‘Bell Horses’ so I’d like you to play a C chord while I sing ‘Bell Horses’.” You sing ‘Bell Horses’ while the children play a C chord, strumming in a downwards crotchet pattern. Make sure to play along with them to encourage them to play in time. Make sure your strumming is very clear both visually as well as auditorily. The focus for the children is on playing rather than singing, as it will be challenging for them to do both at once. Repeat one or two more times if possible.
“Are we playing during any gaps in the song (yes)? That’s because we are playing in time with the pulse. The pulse is like the heartbeat of the song because it never stops, just like our heartbeats, even if there is a gap.” Get the children to repeat the word “pulse” with you three times.
If there is time, get half the children strum the C chord in time with the pulse while the other half sing as they tap the bodies of their ukuleles to the pulse to help keep the others in time. You should sing and tap as well to guide them. Then switch so each group has a turn of strumming and a turn of singing and tapping.
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